September 2006

The 2006 Director's Awards honored leadership and innovation in the federal
courts, and also the extraordinary response of Judiciary employees post-Katrina.
Employees are nominated by their courts for awards in the areas of outstanding
leadership, excellence in court operations, and extraordinary actions.
Recipients are selected by the Director of the Administrative Office of the U.S.
Courts.

Director's Award for Extraordinary Actions

The criteria for the award asks that nominees exhibit bravery and concern for
others in the face of adverse conditions, display creativity and resourcefulness
in a critical situation, and help ensure that the Judiciary's mission is met
during a critical situation.

Thirteen nominations—a total of 90 individuals—received 2006 Director's
Awards for Extraordinary Actions. They were recognized for their heroic efforts,
and for their creativity and resourcefulness, in the aftermath of Hurricane
Katrina. Recipients are from the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit,
the Middle, Eastern and Western Districts of Louisiana, and the Southern
District of Mississippi. They are network and system administrators, probation
and pretrial services officers, property and procurement specialists, staff
attorneys, clerks, clerical assistants, courtroom deputies and secretaries,
among others. For a complete listing of these outstanding individuals, please
visit our website at http://www.uscourts.gov/ttb/09-06/2006awards.html.

Director's Award for Outstanding Leadership

Chief Probation Officer Paul W. DeFelice and Chief Deputy Clerk John Matthew
Domurad, both from the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of New
York, received 2006 Director's Awards for Outstanding Leadership. This award
recognizes managerial employees who may have, for example, led national
endeavors to improve the Judiciary, exhibited exemplary stewardship of
resources, increased workforce productivity, facilitated service, or ensured
access to the courts.

In addition to work on advisory committees, and his efforts to provide better
access to and productivity within the Judiciary, DeFelice was an early and
active supporter of the Access to Law Enforcement System (ATLAS) network for the
federal Judiciary. ATLAS has greatly increased the ability of probation and
pretrial services officers nationwide to perform their investigative and
supervisory duties. He initiated a unique treatment program, the High Impact
Incarceration Program, that has reduced detention rates for defendants and
probation/supervised release violators. His introduction of a completely random
urinalysis program has curtailed the cost of substance abuse testing and led to
interest from other districts in the program's collection and testing
procedures.

Domurad's local efforts to review and investigate the rent bills for the
district's court facilities led to a savings of more than $23 million in rent
for buildings in the Northern District and two facilities in the Southern
District of New York. He has helped to create a process to ensure that Judiciary
rent payments are in compliance with the Code of Federal Regulations and is now
visiting every circuit in the country to work with local circuit and unit
executives to review classification of space and rental rates at each
courthouse.

Director's Award for Excellence in Court Operations: Court
Technology

The Director's Award for Excellence in Court Operations recognizes
achievements in operating with economy and efficiency, innovations that improve
service, or programs that enhance the public's awareness of the Judiciary. All
of the 2006 winners won within this category for excellence in court technology.

Domenic J. D'Allessio, systems programmer for the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for
the Southern District of California, developed and implemented the Cash
Register/Electronic Case Files Program, a software application that automates
the bankruptcy court's cashier/intake deputies' receipt-writing duties,
performing all receipting for any monetary collections and integrating the
Bankruptcy Court Financial Accounting System. The program saves time and effort
and ensures accuracy of data.

In the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia, management analyst
Laura W. Simon and assistant director for automation and technology Chris
Warner, with Mark Soltys, the assistant circuit executive for automation in the
U.S. Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit, were recognized for the roles they
played in the development and implementation of the new Online System for
Clerkship Application and Review (OSCAR). This innovative system, which
automates a very paper-intensive processing of applications for clerkships in
the federal courts, has proved popular with participating judges.

Kirk T. McDonough, assistant manager for the Information Technology system in
the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Eastern District of Missouri, received an
Excellence in Court Operations Award for his leadership in developing the
automated inventory reporting system (AIRS). The program helps manage a court's
inventory and is now in use in 46 court units. Based on court-user suggestions,
McDonough has revised AIRS to incorporate an inventory management system for
consumable supplies, bar code reader functionality, reports required by the
Procurement Management Division, and software licensing management.

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